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MD-2 Build-Up
Pep Guardiola is set to face his favorite player Lionel Messi as the latter has been cleared to play when PSG hosts Man City in a repeat of last season’s semifinal. It is still unclear if Mauricio Pochettino will start the Argentinian star. In Neymar, Mbappe and Messi PSG arguably has the strongest forward line in all club history (imagine Gabriel Batistuta, Brazilian Ronaldo and Raul Blanco all playing in the same club). The Parisians have their sights fixed on all three points in order to enter clashes against RB Leipzig with much less pressure. Man City could set one foot in the round of 16 with a win considering they play Club Brugge in the next two rounds with six points in the bag.
Fantasy favorite Haaland as well as teammate Reus are doubts to start for Dortmund since both missed the domestic league match and training afterwards. Key defenders Thomas Meunier, Raphael Guerriero, Mats Hummels and Manuel Akanji were absent during the preparation training on Monday as well, but the only clarification that can be found (which is not official) is that this is Rose’s decision to allow them rest time. Only Tuesday pre-match training will tell if they are available or not for the match against Sporting CP.
Thomas Tuchel looks to brush off the weekend’s EPL loss to Man City when Chelsea visits wounded Juventus. The Italian club is just sending strange vibes by conceding more goals than usual do in a whole season. The 1-0 score line era is over for the Old Lady, and it will be up to Chelsea’s finishing to get the job done in Turin.
Moving on to the less attractive but more competitive groups, Diego Simeone returns to Milan to play against his old rival AC Milan. The Italians are historically the UCL’s second best club with seven trophies filling their display at the San Siro, and that history came into play in MD-1 against Liverpool, but it was not enough.
Last but not least, Man United will host Villarreal for a chance at redemption. Villareal defeated United a few month ago in the UEFA Europa League final. The Spaniards will be without injured Gerard Moreno who scored one of the winning goals. Solskjaer’s men are going through a poor run of form, with Bruno Fernandes missing a penalty and De Gea missing a ball with bent arm thinking about colliding with the goal post against Aston Villa.
Team News (Injury / Suspension)
Considering the congested schedule in all domestic leagues since MD-1, many players are at risk of rotation if playing against weaker opponents. Expect Real Madrid and Bayern Munich to give chances to young or bench players to get rare starts. It is still early in the UCL so only minor rotations are expected.
MD-2 Injury / Returns / Suspension List
| Club | Player | Injury | Expected Return | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Club | Player | Injury | Expected Return | Status |
| PSG | Layvin Kurzawa | Calf | September | Doubtful |
| Marco Verratti | Discomfort | September | Doubtful | |
| Leo Messi | Returned | |||
| Juan Bernat | Ligament | September | Doubtful | |
| Angel Di Maria | Suspended until MD-3 | |||
| Man City | Benjamin Mendy | Suspended by club | ||
| Ilkay Gundogan | Knock | October | Out | |
| Zinchenko | Calf | October | Out | |
| Aymeric Laporte | Returned | |||
| Rodri | Returned | |||
| John Stones | Returned | |||
| RB Leipzig | Lukas Klostermann | Returned | ||
| Dani Olmo | Thigh | Unknown | Out | |
| Angelino | Suspended | |||
| Adams | Muscle | September | Doubtful | |
| Liverpool | Williams | Ankle | October | Out |
| Thiago Alcantara | Calf | October | Out | |
| Naby Keita | Ankle | October | Out | |
| Harvey Elliott | Ankle | January | Out | |
| Roberto Firmino | Returned | |||
| AC Milan | Krunic | Calf | October | Out |
| Tiemoue Bakayoko | Ankle | October | Out | |
| Alessandro Florenzi | Knee | September | Doubtful | |
| Simon Kjaer | Hamstring | September | Doubtful | |
| Porto | Mangulu Mbemba | Suspended | ||
| Atletico | Stefan Savic | Suspended until MD-4 | ||
| Thomas Lemar | Muscle | September | Doubtful | |
| Dortmund | Throgan Hazard | Returned | ||
| Emre Can | Muscle | October | Out | |
| Giovanni Reyna | Hamstring | September | Doubtful | |
| Mateu Morey | Ligament | December | Out | |
| Haaland | Thigh | September | Doubtful | |
| Marc Reus | Knee | September | Doubtful | |
| Ajax | Klaassen | Returned | ||
| Stekelenburg | Groin | October | Out | |
| Andrea Onana | Suspended until MD-4 | |||
| Inter Milan | Cristian Eriksen | Head | Unknown | Out |
| Arturo Vidal | Thigh | October | Out | |
| Stefano Sensi | Knee | October | Out | |
| Real Madrid | Toni Kroos | Muscle | September | Doubtful |
| Gateth Bale | Hamstring | October | Out | |
| Daniel Carvajal | Calf | October | Out | |
| Ferland Mendy | Discomfort | October | Out | |
| Barcelona | Sergio Aguero | Calf | October | Out |
| Jordi Alba | Discomfort | October | Out | |
| Martin Braithwaite | Knee | November | Out | |
| Masour Dembele | Hamstring | October | Out | |
| Pedri | Thigh | September | Doubtful | |
| Ansu Fati | Returned | |||
| Bayern Munich | Tolisso | Calf | October | Out |
| Kingsley Coman | Heart | October | Doubtful | |
| Man Utd | Luke Shaw | Hamstring | September | Doubtful |
| Marcus Rashford | Shoulder | October | Out | |
| Harry Maguire | Calf | September | Doubtful | |
| Wan Bissaka | Suspended until MD-3 | |||
| Amad Diallo | Thigh | October | Out | |
| Villarreal | Gerard Moreno | Muscle | October | Out |
| Atalanta | Luis Muriel | Muscle | September | Out |
| Palomino | Calf | September | Doubtful | |
| Hans Hatebour | Muscle | October | Out | |
| Juventus | Alvaro Morata | Thigh | October | Out |
| Arthur | Returned | |||
| Paulo Dybala | Thigh | October | Out | |
| Adrien Rabiot | Ankle | September | Doubtful | |
| Chelsea | Timo Werner | Returned | ||
| Edouard Mendy | Returned | |||
| Reece James | Ankle | October | Out | |
| Mason Mount | Unknown | Unknown | Doubtful | |
| Christian Pulisic | Ankle | October | Doubtful | |
| Zenit | Dejan Lovren | Leg | October | Doubtful |
| Serdar Azmoun | Returned | |||
| Sevilla | Youssef Nesyri | Suspended | ||
| Wolfsburg | Anthony Brooks | Suspended |
Note: If a team is not listed then it does not have any notable injuries or suspensions.
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Keep an eye on the comments section for any late updates and be aware that lineups for the Shakhtar Donetsk vs Inter Milan and Ajax vs Besiktas lineups will be released before today’s fantasy transfer deadline at 17:30 BST. Make sure you’re here for that!
Good luck everyone!
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How’s your team shaping up? Have you been hit by any of the missing players? Do you have any tactical questions? And which matches do you plan / wish to watch as a fan? Please share your thoughts in the comments below!
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